Bowden Primary is Bowden House School’s primary provision. We are a day school for boys and girls aged 5-11 who present with social, emotional and mental health needs. We are located on the site of Ben Jonson Primary School in Stepney, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. We share the same values as our secondary school in Seaford, and some of our Year 6 pupils transition to ‘Big Bowden’ in Year 7. We opened in September 2021 and have been growing ever since…

Our vision and values

Our vision is to create a nurturing school environment where every child feels safe and valued, can experience success and be proud of their achievements.

We provide a positive educational experience through flexible, personalised learning, offering children a varied academic, and social and emotional curriculum.

We provide children with opportunities for new experiences to help them develop their self-esteem, promote a growth mindset and raise their aspirations and life chances.

We reward positive attitudes, set clear boundaries and have high expectations of our pupils so they can all reach their true potential and are empowered to become independent, valued citizens enjoying equal rights and opportunities.

We understand that behaviour is communication and use an empathic, trauma-informed approach. We connect before we correct and stay curious.

We help children develop their self-awareness and provide them with strategies to self-regulate so they can form positive relationships with staff and their peers as we believe that successful relationships buffer stress and build resilience.

We promote a ‘We Not Me’ ethos. All staff and children are part of Team Bowden, work collaboratively and support each other. We take individual and collective responsibility for our successes and failures.

We believe in communicating and working closely with families and involving them in their children’s success.

Welcome to Bowden Primary

The Three-Legged Stool

We believe that we are part a three-legged stool consisting of our families, our pupils and our school. If one leg is missing, the stool is unstable and collapses. We want our families as well as our pupils to feel comfortable and secure in our school so that we can all work together to create sustainable change and secure emotional and academic progress.

We are in regular communication with our parents and carers, who are routinely invited into school to celebrate successes and plan for the future. Every term we hold a community event open to our pupils, their households and extended family.